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Detroit Free Press Endorsement

Debbie Stabenow was still a relative newcomer to Washington when she was elected Michigan's junior senator in 2000, knocking off her capable but aloof Republican predecessor, Spence Abraham, after she had spent just four years in the U.S. House.

Fast-forward to 2012, and Stabenow has become one of the Senate's most effective deal-makers, a fierce advocate for her home state and the Great Lakes that surround it.

Former U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra's campaign against Stabenow has been a disappointing and disorganized fiasco that failed to showcase his experience or depth. But it's hard to imagine that any challenger this year could have cleared the high bar Stabenow has set for her office.